New Hampshire fishing reports
288 reports for New Hampshire — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Fall trout and perch bite builds as NH waters cool
Water in the Merrimack and Lake Winnipesaukee area is sitting in the high 40s to low 50s, with USGS gauge 01072870 reading 49°F, gauge 01073319 at 50°F and gauge 01091000 at 51°F. That is firmly in fall pattern range. Flow is modest, with gauge 01091000 at 27.4 cfs and gauge 01073319 at 12.6 cfs, so clear, low water favors careful presentations. Regionally, The Fisherman — New England Freshwater reports white perch to 1 pound 10 ounces in brackish Merrimack River sections on jigs sweetened with mummichog and on worms, with fish on bottom or suspended at mid depth. The same source notes stocked rainbow trout being taken from shore, and that anything orange, in PowerBait or hardware, is selling well to trout anglers.
Cooling Merrimack Valley streams set up fall trout and perch
Water in southern NH is cooling fast. USGS gauge 01091000 reads 44°F at 29.1 cfs, while gauges 01073319 and 01072870 sit at 47°F and 46°F with 13.1 and 70.4 cfs. Those temperatures are firmly in the fall trout range, and low flows keep the water clear. Per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, recently stocked trout are producing across the region, with white PowerBait the standout for shore anglers and hardware a distant second. The same report had white perch and bass mixed in, with bass favoring live shiners and slow presentations. Tactical Bassin (blog) notes fall bass are chasing baitfish, and a bladed swimbait or underspin adds flash that draws reaction strikes.
Cooling Merrimack tributaries set up fall smallmouth and brown trout
Water temps across southern NH gauges sit in the mid to upper 40s this morning. USGS gauge 01091000 reads 46°F at 30 cfs, gauge 01072870 reads 48°F at 73 cfs, and gauge 01073319 reads 49°F at 14.1 cfs. That is a firm step down from summer, and it changes how fish behave. Per Field & Stream, as water temps fall into the 40s and 50s, muskies and other predators leave shallow summer haunts and feed hard to bulk up for winter, favoring deep structural edges and windblown rocky shorelines. Smallmouth in this temperature range typically slide off shallow flats toward deeper rock and slow down. Tactical Bassin points to October fish chasing baitfish, where adding a blade to a swimbait or fishing an underspin adds flash and vibration. Wired 2 Fish also notes that October to mid-November is prime time for lake-run brown trout moving into feeder rivers and creeks, a pattern that typically carries over to cool-water tributaries.
Fall trout stocking and bass on the move across New England
The fall shift is the story this week across New England. Per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, trout stocking is in full swing, with one shop reporting great trout fishing at several recently stocked reservoirs and ponds. Almost all of that fishing is from shore, and white PowerBait has been the hottest offering, with hardware working but not nearly as well. Bass are okay by comparison, mostly on live shiners. A tournament report from a southern Massachusetts lake noted a slower bite where fishing very slowly, even dead-sticking a plastic worm, produced a four-pound largemouth. For Winnipesaukee, treat that as the regional pattern: cooling water pushes fish into a slower, more deliberate mood.
Fall trout stocking and cooling water set up Merrimack bite
Water temperatures across the Merrimack and Lake Winnipesaukee drainages are sitting at 50 to 51°F on our gauge readings, squarely in the range where fall feeding turns on for cold-water and cool-water species. Flows are low and stable: 73.8 cfs at gauge 01072870, 15.2 cfs at gauge 01073319, and 30.9 cfs at gauge 01091000, while gauge 01073500 reads 105 cfs. Clear, low water means fish are spooky in shallow runs and more willing to feed at dawn, dusk and under overcast skies. Per The Fisherman — New England Freshwater, shops in neighboring Massachusetts report fall trout stocking is under way, and Jerry's Bait and Tackle noted white PowerBait as the hottest trout offering, with hardware working less well.
Cooling NH rivers set up fall trout and smallmouth windows
Gauge readings across southern New Hampshire show water in the upper 40s to 50°F, which is the range where fish start feeding to bulk up for winter. Gauge 01072870 reads 50°F at 78.3 cfs, gauge 01073319 reads 49°F at 16.8 cfs, and gauge 01091000 reads 46°F at 36.9 cfs. Per Field & Stream, fall fish leave shallow summer haunts and feed actively as temperatures fall through the 40s and 50s. Wired 2 Fish reports lake-run Brown Trout are moving into feeder rivers and creeks across the Great Lakes from October into mid-November. That is an Ontario report, so treat it as a seasonal signal for the same fish behavior rather than a local one.
Cooling water puts fall turnover and clear bays in play
Three of our four USGS gauges (01072870, 01073319 and 01091000) are reporting 52°F water this afternoon. That is squarely in the range where fall patterns take over across NH freshwater. Flows are modest. Gauge 01072870 is at 79.2 cfs, gauge 01091000 at 40.2 cfs and gauge 01073319 at just 17.4 cfs. Gauge 01073500 is the highest at 122 cfs, with no temperature reading. Clear, low water like this suits anglers who like to see what they're fishing.
Merrimack-area waters cool into fall pattern, low flows hold
USGS gauge 01072870 read 52°F at 81.7 cfs this morning, with gauge 01073319 at 53°F and 17.4 cfs and gauge 01091000 at 52°F and 39.1 cfs. Water in the low 50s is a clear fall marker. Fish are shifting off summer haunts and feeding more aggressively as the water cools. Per Tactical Bassin, October bass are chasing baitfish, and a bladed swimbait or underspin adds flash and vibration. The same outlet highlights a shallow approach with jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater for overlooked October fish.
Fall striper and tog bite builds along the NH coast
Fall is the story on the Gulf of Maine this week. Per Anglers Journal, the late-season striper blitz is the heartbeat of the Northeast fishery, with birds, baitfish and gamefish all staging ahead of the move south or offshore. Saltwater Edge Blog (RI) describes striped bass fishing in southern New England as incredible for weeks, with tautog chewing as the water cools. That is a few states south of NH, but the same fall run feeds the migration through our waters. Coastal Angler Magazine also noted an overnight trip off New Hampshire produced a 1,116-pound bluefin tuna, a reminder of how much life is offshore right now.
Fall smallmouth and walleye shift deeper as Winnipesaukee cools
Mid-October is when Lake Winnipesaukee turns over from summer patterns, and the fish are already moving. Fall bass coverage this week from Tactical Bassin (blog) describes bass chasing baitfish and responding to flash and vibration, with a bladed swimbait or underspin working a paddle tail through the school. That is a general fall bass pattern, not a Winnipesaukee report, but it fits the lake's smallmouth well. Smallmouth Bass are Active where baitfish gather. Fishing the Midwest notes that October bites can be strong as water cools, and that walleyes will take a plain rig of bottom bouncer, snell and nightcrawler in cool-water periods. Walleye are Active on that approach, typically at low light.
Cooling rivers set up a fall smallmouth window in NH
Streams feeding the Merrimack and Lake Winnipesaukee watersheds are running cool and low, with three of four USGS gauges (01072870, 01073319, 01091000) reading 53°F. Flow is modest: 80 cfs at gauge 01072870, 18 cfs at gauge 01073319, 35 cfs at gauge 01091000 and 117 cfs at gauge 01073500. Water in the low 50s is the range where smallmouth shift from active feeding toward slower, deeper holding spots, so fish tend to be less spread out than in summer. A pattern reported by Tactical Bassin (blog) this month points to bass chasing baitfish in the fall, with a bladed or flashy swimbait a useful search tool when fish are on the move.
Fall bass and perch settle in as NH waters cool
Gauge readings across the Merrimack and Lake Winnipesaukee region show water temps of 51 to 52°F this morning, with flow at 78.3 cfs on gauge 01072870, 17.4 cfs on gauge 01073319 and 34.8 cfs on gauge 01091000. Gauge 01073500 reads 117 cfs. Water in the low 50s puts freshwater fish into their fall feeding pattern, when predators key on baitfish and the bite tends to be best in the warmest part of the day. Tactical Bassin points to an October shallow bite, with jigs, soft jerkbaits and topwater working for bass that relate to subtle cover and are often overlooked. Field & Stream adds that fall bass anglers can cover water with spinnerbaits to find active fish, and that turnover rarely hits a whole lake at once, so clean, clear water is the target.